Peace, Love & Hygiene: Vol. 91
Choices. For every random or designed action there was a series of choices that led to that moment. I’ll be honest. It was plot twist a plenty just to get Traci and I out the door at the last minute. But we were exactly where we needed to be when we needed to be there. I was in my element.
Our first stop was on a busy street. We recognized some familiar faces, and they recognized us right away in return. There was a gentleman in a wheelchair. He talked to Stan for a moment. Stan pointed to the van. Then I saw him point at his two friends. Again, he waved them to the van. The two gentlemen were over by the Stanbulance while the woman came over to Traci and I. Traci got out to get her a meal, while I leaned in the back for some bags for her. When she came up to the window, I recognized her, but I hadn’t seen her in a long time.
She was on the road to recovery. She had recently been released from a psychiatric hospital. When they gave her a drug test, she expected to test positive for heroin. Except, that wasn’t what was in her drug test. It was a bizarre concoction of narcotics that she had no idea she was taking. Everything from an anti-depressant that she had never been prescribed before, to an unknown amount of ecstasy.
Next, we stopped at two different tent sites. While we waited for the medical team to come back from checking on them, I heard a squeaky mew. We looked out the window and we saw a tiny black kitten. I tried to lure him back out with some of my chicken soup, but he wasn’t willing to relinquish his shelter inside the bottom of an old tree.
We drove around for a bit until we found The Brothers. We gave them both food, hygiene items and lots of hugs. They are working with Kyle and are getting into housing. A few people I talked to tonight were in the process of getting off the street and into housing. Everyone I talked to about it was looking forward to living someplace clean without any drugs.
The next place went to was a busy spot. It got kind of hairy for a minute. At first, we helped a homeless couple with some food and clothes. Then a car pulled off the road and into the same lot where we were parked. I asked Stan quickly if he knew these people. He said they didn’t. Traci looked at me and I shook my head a subtle No. As she shooed them away from the clothes, I noticed a man start pulling food out of the back of the van and just start eating it.
I had to put an immediate and authoritative end to that situation. Around the same time, the girl who I got into an argument with a few weeks ago was making a beeline straight towards us. We gave her a meal and a Mag Bag, but Traci told her No on or going through the clothes. Thankfully, she merely pouted and walked away.
After that I saw a guy who, when sober, is brilliant and sweet, and creative, and artistic, and funny, and chock full of talent. Tonight, he was just out of it completely. He could hardly speak. He had tears in his eyes. All he could say was, “help me”. He didn’t want to see the medics. I got him a bottle of water and mixed the Liquid IV powdered vitamin mix to it. I shook it up and handed it to him. He drank the entire bottle in one drink. I brought him a cup of chicken noodle soup. I’ll be concerned until I see him again.
After we didn’t see anyone else to help, we drove down to the next place where a lot of homeless people camped out.
I saw my Widow Who Sits! She was in a great mood, she begged me to come out of the van and see her. I swung her around in the air to make her laugh. We ended up going through the last of our food while we were there. We made a survival difference for a lot of people who are so close to clawing their way out of the vortex known as The Streets. The Defended Girl is actively working on getting clean. She has been taking all the right steps. She is so close and nearly there. Like the first person I talked to, her drug test revealed all sorts of random narcotics that weren’t heroin.
I’m begging my friends who are losing their war on drugs and addiction, please stop. Please stop before you get the flesh rot. The motivation to quit using has become an urgency. It’s a matter of life or a fierce consequence.
I went inside another den tonight. It was a lot more organized than I expected it to be. There was a young black cat with a yellow collar that had a tiny bell. It’s the time of year to bring kitty food with me. Only a couple of people were there. Betty Boop was nearby. I love seeing her and her guy. They are just some of the most wonderful people to talk to. I know that they are making different choices and working towards different results.
Everyday, when I get up, I want to be a better version of myself than I was the day before. I see the good in people. I see the light in their eyes when I tell them they are so loved. I see tears sometimes, too. And I tell them they are so loved.
Because that’s how we do it in Detroit.
Amen.
